Harvick cashes in with another victory

CONCORD, N.C. – Nothing can stop Kevin Harvick these days, not an experimental rules package or a field of racers with nothing but pride on the line, and the hottest driver in NASCAR scored a $1 million payday by winning the All-Star race.

Harvick’s win Saturday night came exactly 11 years to the day of his only other win in Charlotte Motor Speedway’s exhibition event. This time the victory is part of a raging hot streak that brought him into the AllStar race with five points race victories, including the last two.

It’s technically three in a row now, although the All-Star race is for cash only. But the stat sheet shows that Harvick has won six of the 13 races since the season-opening Daytona 500, and Ford drivers have eight of those wins.

“Everything is going our way,” Harvick said.

Because the All-Star race is a made-for-TV event, NASCAR could play with the rules and try to spice up a race that has been beyond boring the last 10 years. No amount of tinkering to the format or the rules could liven the event, so NASCAR made a radical change this time. The aerodynamic package included a controversial horsepower-sapping restrictor plate, and it slowed the cars into a tighter pack that allowed for increased passing.

The package Saturday night did make for better racing, but the same result: Harvick celebrating again. This time it was the 50th Cup victory for Stewart-Haas Racing.

“A lot of pushing and shoving. It reminded me a lot of IROC racing back in the day,” Harvick said, referring to the old all-star series that pitted champions from various series together in identically prepared cars. “We will see what everybody thinks.”

Daniel Suarez won a stage in an earlier qualifying race to make the main event, and he finished second in a Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing. Suarez had one shot at trying to beat Harvick when the race went into overtime and he lined up next to Harvick on a restart with two extra laps ahead. Suarez got a push from teammate Denny Hamlin but he never could clear Harvick, and Harvick won by 0.325 seconds.

Joey Logano was third in a Ford for Team Penske and Hamlin was fourth.

Matt Kenseth of Cambridge, Wis., who started on the pole, finished 14th.

Logano had the push of Harvick on the final restart but knew he had little chance at getting around Harvick. He still tried to craft a plan.

“It is fun to race with nothing to lose, that is the best part of All-Star races,” Logano said. “Everyone goes out there ... and all you see is money signs at the end of this race.”

NASCAR was optimistic and hesitant to make a judgment despite the feelings after the experiment.

“From an eye-test, we were certainly pleased with what we saw,” said NASCAR head of competition Steve O’Donnell, who felt the lead changes Saturday night topped the last four years.

O’Donnell made no promises as to what might come of the rules package, but also didn’t rule out that it could be used again.